Activating the Brain

In order to better ourselves and challenge the way we think, we should challenge our brain. Activities like juggling demands great hand-eye coordination and gets them in action together. Today, try to offset your habits and left or right brain dominance by trying to do daily activities with your non-dominant hand. If you are right-handed, use your left hand to write, and vice versa. As children grow they don’t normally choose a dominant hand till about the age of 3. By challenging them in these ways we can activate the power of both hemispheres in the brain. Children who are able to continually be challenged like this tend to retain knowledge better and become more proficient in any subject.

Nevertheless, the fact remains that the left and right hemispheres of your brain (whether you are male or female) process information in different ways:

Your Left Hemisphere |

Linear

Sequential

Concrete

Logical

Verbal

Reality-based

Your Right Hemisphere

Holistic

Random

Symbolic

Intuitive

Non-verbal

Fantasy-oriented

Discussion today is about keeping our minds sharp and active as we age. There are countless apps for the iphones, ipads and android phones for just this purpose. Working on crossword puzzles and exercising the logical, rational capabilities of the left hemisphere is certainly part of any anti-aging mind-building program. However, stimulating mental abilities used to keep the left brain active is no less, or more, important for preventing and countering the effects of aging than is the utilization of the creative, intuitive power of the right brain.

We all tend to process information using our dominant brain side. However, as the list above shows, the world is not all linear, sequential, concrete, etc., nor is it all holistic, random or symbolic. It is a combination of both. Therefore, if you can approach both the minor and the significant challenges of life by calling upon both sides of your brain using the corpus callosum and the other structures in the brain which are responsible for organizing thoughts, your left and right sides will be able to more effectively work as a whole.

Here are some activities to try using your opposite hand!

At home/work, do all your daily tasks using the normal equipment, but with your left or opposite hand:

Stir while making dinner in pans or pots

Fill and pour the kettle or pour milk from a jug

Open cans, doors or use the phone

Cut bread or spread something with a knife

Eat, drink and write (use the opposite hand)

Have your computer mouse on the opposite side

Outside games:

Dribble a basketball or shoot for the net with the opposite hand only. It works for most sports and your teams must all play with their opposite hand as well.

I have to echo a lot of what has been shared and celebrated by Danielle B below. We also had a rough start with our first daycare; I was prepared to quit my job after the resulting loss of trust and confidence. I was almost mean when I was asking difficult questions about how things are run at this Read more...

Sonia P

October 31, 2018

Our child was enrolled with Childventures for 5 Years.
We chose the CV program as it offered seamless before and after school care, no down time over the holidays when we didn’t have the time off. The safety and security of the facility was a big deal and the core knowledge and Montessori base Read more...

Brandon L

January 15, 2018

My children were enrolled at Childventures for 4 years. We chose CV’s JK/SK program over the public or other private sector because the class sizes are smaller, the strong reading program and advanced curriculum content.
After completing the JK/SK program their transitions to public school wer Read more...

Simona N

January 8, 2018

My two children were enrolled at CV for 3 and 4 years. We had such a Positive experience throughout our time at CV that we didn't want it to end!
When they started public school we quickly found the transition to be lacking in many ways mostly because of what we had become used to at CV. We pul Read more...

Roxanne T

January 4, 2018

My children were enrolled with Childventures from infant to completion of SK. We chose CV over the public or other private sector because of the smaller classroom sizes and focused attention on Montessori skills, reading/writing, mathematic development and organization of learning for young children Read more...

Alana Welby-Solomon

December 18, 2017

Our LO is 16 months old and is enrolled at the Oakville location. It's clear to see that he enjoys being there everyday just as much as we enjoy dropping him off. Doesn't matter who's at the desk when we first enter in the mornings, whether it's Kathryn, Chris or Matthew we are always greeted with s Read more...

Tricia F

December 12, 2017

I just wanted to write and say, two weeks into our son attending child ventures my husband and I noticed a HUGE difference in his behaviour, manners and patience. Best of all he was potty trained in a couple short weeks! We noticed what he practised at school, he brought back to our home life. Manne Read more...

Krysta M

November 15, 2017

My daughter has been with CV since the age of 1. She started out in the infant program and is now currently thriving in the JK program. At 3 1/2 years of age she is far more advanced than I could have imagined. Keep up the great work CV!! Read more...

Audrea M

October 24, 2017

I would recommend CV to all my friends because it's so great. My son started at CV When he's 11 months old. All the teachers are very caring, nice and knowledgeable. Currently my son is in the JK/SK, he's very happy to study there. Read more...

Maggie S

October 24, 2017

We are very impressed with Child Ventures Oakville. I was nervous to leave my son to go back to work but transitioning into daycare was made so much easier by the wonderful staff and teachers. We are confident we made the right choice and see so much growth already in our son the past month he has b Read more...

Diandra

October 16, 2017

The Chef provides delicious foods to eat and tries to provide something that Ashton will eat (he is very texture oriented and picky). They approach me to find out what his favourite foods are and try their best to ensure that he is getting what he needs throughout the day. Ella clearly loves her foo Read more...

Chris A

October 6, 2017

Our son is 22 months old and this is his second experience in a childcare setting. We call Ryan sunshine personified - he is a happy, smiley little guy. He is also a little guy who has had a pretty rough start to his little life. Much of his first year was spent at SickKids but he handled multiple s Read more...